Monday, March 4, 2013

Food in Florida

One of the best things about going away on vacation - no meals to plan - all you have to do is find a place and make your selection - nice for a week but I wouldn't want to be doing it all the time!!  We had some great meals when we were away - we only ate out for breakfast on two mornings, Continental breakfasts were provided at the hotels we stayed at.  Most were great, especially the deluxe breakfast at Hampton Inn - everything you would want - it was really nice!  And, then there's the opposite end of the spectrum - no fruit, no cereal, nothing except packaged Danish and gigantic muffins and bagels in a bag - but no toaster - eating a dry bagel in the car is not too appetizing.  

We didn't get pictures of everything, I guess sometimes we must have just been too hungry to think about taking a picture - travelling around does that to you!!!  

This was a restaurant we read about in Ft. Lauderdale so we wanted to try something with local fare - it was a huge restaurant, very loud, especially when the signal came and everyone started banging their wooden mallets.



We shared the Crab Sampler - garlic crab clusters, golden crab cluster, Alaskan Queen Crab legs and Dungeness Garlic Crab Cluster with parsley buttered potatoes.  The garlic bread we ordered was probably the best I have ever had - it was on a small loaf, made with real garlic, not a speck of garlic spread, I have to make it that way!!

Shivers Bar-B-Q -in Homestead was another local place - it doesn't look like much from the outside, but,oh, my, was it good.  We both had the rib and pulled pork combo, with cole slaw and baked beans.

I have never had a glass of wine that looked like that - you just peel off the top and take a sip!


We shared peach cobbler and was it good!!


Playa Cafe in South Beach Miami - we just started walking from our hotel for a breakfast spot - this was just a little hole in the wall place - it was all Cuban food,  Gary tried a Cuban coffee, which he liked.  You just order from this menu on the wall - I had an egg sandwich which was unlike anything I've ever had before.  I ordered an orange juice, it was fresh squeezed, it was the best part - funny thing, it cost as much as my breakfast, $3.49.  

Playa Cafe


On our way to the Keys, we stopped for lunch at Herbie's in Marathon

We both had the conch burger - let's just say, we'd never be ordering another one of those again - it was so chewy!  It looks nice in the picture but I surely would never crave a piece of conch!


After we took the air boat tour, we stopped for lunch at this restaurant


The chicken noodle soup was really good - a lot of noodles in that bowl!


We wanted to try some local fare again - we shared a sampler plate, it's a good thing it was only 2 pieces of each item - this would be a frog leg, which was ok, it tastes like chicken.  Also on the platter were gator which also tasted like chicken, hush puppies and fry bread - which was just a big mass of deep fried bread - yuck! 


Nothing too healthy at this spot!



Another Miami establishment - Kone Restaurant - Gary had the lobster plate which he really enjoyed.  I had the lobster and  shrimp ravioli, it was really good too, it doesn't photograph well at all though, that's why I'm not showing it.  


We had a couple of cool drinks on a hot night in Miami


This was in a diner car in Miami - dessert for both of us - and it was big - I had the brownie concoction, Gary had the banana split - his favorite.


One night we had a lovely shrimp dinner and the Florida standard, Key Lime Pie - I can't believe I didn't get any pictures of  that meal.


But, now it's back to eating properly - really, who could would want to eat that way for every long, home cooking tastes pretty good after eating all your meals out for a week.  


11 comments:

  1. I haven't been to Florida yet. I hope to go soon.

    I'm sure I would've enjoyed the crab sampler, but I'm not sure about the conch sandwich!

    The frog legs look like ballet dancer legs....lol

    Did you thrift while on vacation?

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  2. eating out is my favorite part of vacation! when we went to florida last year it seemed like everything we ate was fried too!
    and omg i'm gagging just thinking of a conch burger!!!! you are a brave woman to try that!

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  3. Wow, you chowed down on some of my favorites. That seafood platter looks to die for and I am a rib lover. Sounds like you had a fab time. I agee, I love eating out and checking the local fare. But after a week there's nothing quite like a home cooked meal.
    hugs,
    Jann

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  4. My Grandpa would order frog legs all the time, mostly just to gross me out. Good for you guys for trying local stuff! It looks like you had so much fun!
    I love getting a yummy Cuban Sandwich when I'm down there. Now with all this thought of food, I'm going to go wipe the drool off my face. :)

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  5. How do people in Florida stay so dang skinny with all that yummy food around?! The glass of wine with the peel off top has to be about the coolest and most dangerous thing I have ever seen! Hopefully that doesn't start being a trend around my neck of the woods:-)

    Erica

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  6. I love to travel and get away from the kitchen as much as any woman but sometimes the restaurant food leaves a lot to be desired and I'd rather be home making a home cooked supper! Hubby is the same. Even to go out to eat in Freddy is a major decision! lol Do you remember The Diplomat restaurant on the Woodstock Rd.? We're going there tomorrow night and I'm already trying to figure out what to order. They have the Chinese buffet but it's just too much food for me. At least you tried different things. The crab platter would interest me.

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  7. Oh yum! We had a blast eating our way thru the Keys! Lots of fresh shrimp,lobster and oysters! And we forgot to even have a slice of Key Lime pie! lol..Looks like you found a lot of great spots!
    Liz

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  8. Hi Jill, it's almost dinner time here in the North West and my mouth is watering. I nominated you for the Liebster Award which is for up and coming blogs with less than 200 followers. Your blog is so fun and it just makes me smile. If you want to accept, you will need to follow the rules on my blog. It does take quite some time so I'm not sure if you want to follow through or not. You blog is deserving!Happy Blogging!
    Linda

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  9. It's day 2 back on Weight Watchers for me, so this post is a killer! Everything looks so good! And funny that the conch burger is what I thought looked the best! hahaha...Well, that and the brownie concoction! lol
    I hope the trip was a blast!
    Erica :)

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  10. I find it really difficult to eat while travelling. Unless it's a big city with lots of choices. And you need lots of good fuel when you are sightseeing!

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  11. Not sure about some of those local dishes ... but I'm impressed you were willing to try them. Glad you had a nice trip. Thanks for sharing!

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